Sunday Funday Pasta Recipes

Steps:

• For the sauce: Add the oil to a 6-quart Instant Pot® and set to saute (see Cook's Note). Add the short ribs and brown well. Transfer to a plate, then add the pork ribs and brown well. Transfer to a plate. Add the onions and garlic and cook, stirring often, until the onions are golden and the garlic is soft, about 5 minutes. Add the tomato paste and stir well to coat all the onions. Pour in the wine and scrape up any browned bits on the bottom of the pot. Bring to a boil and let cook until reduced by half, about 2 minutes.
• Stir in the tomatoes, then add the beef, pork, sausages, 1 tablespoon salt, several grinds of black pepper and a pinch of red pepper flakes if using.
• Follow the manufacturer's guide for locking the lid and preparing to cook. Set to pressure cook on manual high setting for 50 minutes.
• For the meatballs: Meanwhile, combine the sirloin, Parmesan, breadcrumbs, milk, parsley, garlic, egg, some salt and a few grinds of pepper in a medium bowl and mix well with a wooden spoon. Form into 1- to 2-inch balls.
• After the pressure cook cycle is complete, follow the manufacturer's guide for quick release and wait until the quick release cycle is complete. Be careful of any remaining steam and unlock and remove the lid.
• Carefully remove the beef, pork and sausage. Skim any excess fat from the sauce and discard. When cool enough to handle, remove and discard any bones and excess fat from the meat. Chop the meat and sausage into bite-size pieces. Return the meat to the sauce and add the meatballs to the pot. Seal the pot and cook at manual high pressure for 5 minutes.
• After the pressure cook cycle is complete, follow the manufacturer's guide for quick release and wait until the quick release cycle is complete. Be careful of any remaining steam and unlock and remove the lid. Season with salt and pepper. Serve over pasta or polenta.

Steps:

• Brown meat of choice. Once browned, drain some of the fat off and return pot to stovetop. Over medium heat, add 2 small cans stewed (or crushed if you don't have stewed) tomatoes, 2 small cans whole tomatoes and 2 small cans tomato sauce to the beef; extra sauce can be used to thin the sauce and tomato paste can be used to thicken the sauce if necessary. To the tomato/beef mixture, add granulated sugar, oregano, italian seasoning and one whole clove of garlic (smashed with the back of your knife). Turn heat down to low and simmer sauce, stirring occasionally, for 5-6 hours (or all day if you have the time). While slow cooking for several hours is key to providing a very robust taste, a very tasty dish can be whipped up in under an hour if short on time! **As long as the beef and sausage are cooked through, you are good to go. Three hours before the 6 hours is up, add sliced button mushrooms to the sauce. One hour before the 6 hours is up, slice 6 links of uncooked sweet Italian sausage into 1 1/2 inch pieces and add to the sauce to cook. After 5-6 hours of cooking, remove the garlic clove; add a dash more oregano if needed and salt and pepper to taste. Adding the salt and pepper at the end ensures that the sauce isn't too salty and that the salt flavor is not dissipated through hours of cooking. Simmer for 10 more minutes. Serve sauce atop the pasta of your choice, use it in lasagna or can :-) Enjoy!

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C).
• Drizzle 1 tablespoon olive oil in the bottom of a large roasting pan. Place beef, pork, and chicken in pan and turn to coat with olive oil.
• Roast in the preheated oven until meat is well browned, 20 to 30 minutes.
• Heat remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Cook and stir onion with a pinch of salt in hot oil until onion is soft and translucent, about 5 minutes. Add garlic; cook and stir until fragrant, about 1 minute.
• Pour crushed tomatoes, 1 1/2 cups water, and tomato paste into onion mixture. Add roasted beef, pork, and chicken to tomato sauce mixture.
• Pour remaining 1/2 cup water into the roasting pan, and bring to a boil while scraping the browned bits of food off of the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon. Pour roasting pan water mixture into tomato mixture. Stir Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, Italian parsley, 2 teaspoons salt, ground black pepper, and red pepper flakes into tomato sauce; bring to a simmer, reduce heat to low, and simmer gently until sauce reduces and meat is tender, about 4 hours. Transfer meat to a dish. Adjust sauce seasonings to taste.